Bury are now almost certain to be expelled from the English Football League after a proposed takeover by C&N Sporting Risk fell through, just 90 minutes before a league-set deadline for the deal to be completed.

The League One club’s owner Steve Dale was originally given until midnight on Friday to prove he could pay off Bury’s debts and fund the next two seasons or find someone who could.

Two hours before that deadline expired, Dale told reporters he had sold the club to C&N, a London-based sports analytics company set up by former Labour spin doctor Alastair Campbell’s son Rory Campbell and former Barnet caretaker manager Henry Newman, who met while scouting for West Ham.

“The protracted crisis around Bury and Bolton shows the regulatory regime is not fit for purpose and has to be sorted out.

“We’ve put forward a range of proposals to deal with the ownership issues we’re seeing – it’s time for the football authorities to be shaken out of their complacency and show serious engagement with these ideas.

“We can’t have this situation again. An 11th hour closing of a club is not good for football, for the reputation of the game or those owners who are actually doing a good job.”